AFRL Fellows and Early Career Award recipients honored at awards banquet

  • Published
  • By Bryan Ripple
  • 88th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio – The Air Force is stimulating new thinking about future ways of warfighting and the answers to some of the most complex challenges are being provided by scientists and engineers from across AFRL.

However, after 17 years of global conflict against other than near-peer adversaries, we are emerging from a period of strategic atrophy, aware that our competitive military advantage has been eroding, as stated in the 2018 National Defense Strategy.

Air Force leaders have said that scientists and engineers can’t afford to slow down. In fact, they’ve stated, “As United States adversaries close the technology gap, we need to push the boundaries of what’s possible and invent the future. America’s warfighters depend on us to innovate smarter and faster to keep the fight unfair.”

Thirteen of those scientists and engineers were recognized Oct. 25 for outstanding career accomplishments during the 2018 AFRL Fellows and Science and Engineering Early Career Awards Banquet held at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. Eight were inducted as AFRL Fellows and five were recognized with Science and Engineering Early Career Awards.

Collectively, this year’s Fellows and ECA recipients were honored for significant contributions made to the Air Force in the areas of material affordability, quantum information, artificial intelligence, munitions, laser eye protection, software systems for estimation and guidance in space, and wide bandgap semiconductor technologies.

The AFRL Fellows award, established in 1987 to recognize the laboratory’s scientists and engineers for exceptional career accomplishments in either research, technology development and transition, or program and organizational leadership, has only been presented to 119 people including this year’s recipients since its inception in 1987. The number of annual awards is limited to no more than 0.2 percent of AFRL’s current technical staff and the total number of active Fellows cannot exceed 4 percent of their technical staff. In addition to receiving an AFRL Fellows medallion, the new Fellows receive a two-year research grant of $150,000 per year and prominent display documenting their achievement in the AFRL headquarters building.

“As world-leading experts in their respective subject matters, these new Fellows affirm AFRL’s reputation as leader in science and technology excellence,” said Maj. Gen. William Cooley, AFRL commander. “Every one of these Fellows honored tonight is a nationally recognized leader in their field. They accomplished this standing through integrity, strength of leadership, a breadth of high-quality work, dedication to our mission, and relentless commitment to excellence in research and development,” he said.

This year’s AFRL Fellows include:

Dr. Paul Alsing, Principal Research Physicist and Group Lead for Quantum Information Science, Information Directorate.
Mr. Douglas Carter, Principal Materials Engineer and Leader of the Materials Affordability Team, Logistics Systems Support Branch, Materials and Manufacturing Directorate.
Dr. Nathan Dalrymple, Technical Director of the Advanced Integration Team, Systems Technology Office.
Dr. Dean Evans, Technical Director, Plans and Programs Directorate, Headquarters AFRL.
Dr. Gregg Jessen, Principal Electronics Engineer and Program Lead for Electronic Devices, Devices for Sensing Branch, Sensors Directorate.
Dr. Leon McLin Jr., Senior Research Optometrist and Vision Scientist, Optical Radiation Bioeffects Branch, Airman Systems Directorate, 711th Human Performance Wing.
Dr. Lawrence “Robbie” Robertson III, Principal Research Aerospace Engineer and Satellite Communications Mission Lead, Space Vehicles Directorate.
Dr. Michael Stanek, Technical Advisor, Vehicle Integration Division, Aerospace Systems Directorate.

The AFRL Science and Engineering Early Career Award honors some of AFRL’s most promising young scientists and engineers for exceptional leadership potential and mission contributions early in their research careers.

The Early Career Award winners recognized at the banquet were:

Dr. Kevin Brink, Research Engineer, Integrated Sensing and Processing Sciences Branch, Munitions Directorate.
Dr. Hamilton Scott Clouse, Research Electronics Engineer, Multi-Domain Sensing Autonomy Division, Sensors Directorate.
Dr. Brandon Howe, Materials Engineer, Nanoelectronics Research Branch, Materials and Manufacturing Directorate.
Dr. Benjamin Prince, Research Chemist, Battlespace Environment Division, Space Vehicles Direcorate.
Dr. Griffin Romigh, Research Electrical Engineer, Battlespace Acoustics Branch, Airman Systems Directorate, 711th Human Performance Wing.

“The substantial accomplishments of this year’s Fellows are simply second to none,” said Dr. Timothy Bunning, acting AFRL Chief Technology Officer. “We take this evening to step back and celebrate and to marvel in the potential future state as exemplified by our ECA honorees. Kudos to each of the honorees and the local teams of which they are part of,” Bunning said.